How to Cook Garlic: Different Styles from Around the World

How to cook garlic using
various methods around the world is an interesting topic. Garlic cooking
methods are used around the entire world to make condiments or as a primary
spice. Cooked garlic is a basic component in many dishes on a global
scale. Cultures from North America, South America, Asia, Europe and the Middle
East all consume it frequently. It is the third most popular spice behind salt
and pepper. Millions of tons of garlic are consumed every day worldwide. The
health benefits of garlic are nearly legendary. The most common part of the
garlic plant that gets used in recipes is the bulb. It has a pungent, strong
flavor that is undeniable. The leaves are sometimes eaten, but rarely. They
tend to be much milder in flavor than the bulbs.

The flavor of the garlic often varies based upon its methods of
preparation. Raw garlic is the strongest tasting form of garlic. It
can be mixed with olive oil or spread on bread with various vegetables and
additional spices. Bread with garlic spread on top of it is commonly called
bruschetta, garlic bread, garlic toast, and crostini. The garlic is often
minced and spread over bread with tomatoes and basil or spread on with other
flavors or by itself. Garlic is also commonly paired with onion and ginger as
well as tomato.

These various garlic flavor combinations influence foods from a variety
of regions and culinary disciplines. Ginger mixed with garlic comes
predominantly from Asia, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. Specifically, in
Korean they make a dish called black garlic which is prepared by fermenting
garlic at high temperature. It is mixed with soy sauce throughout all of Asia. The
Japanese often use garlic with steamed rice.

Directions: Combine all of the ingredients except the pork, canola
oil, scallions, lettuce and rice. Add the pork. Cover and refrigerate
overnight. In a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil. Add the strips
of pork, DO NOT overfill the pan, and stir-fry over high heat until browned in spots,
about 2 minutes of cooking time per pan. Add more oil to the skillet. Place the
pork to a platter and garnish with scallions. Serve with lettuce leaves and
steamed rice.

Cook the noodles in a large pot of boiling, lightly salted
water according to package directions just to al dente. Drain and rinse quickly
with cool water. Set aside.

While the pasta is cooking, whisk together all the sauce
ingredients except for the cornstarch. Measure out 1/4 cup and set aside. Whisk
in the cornstarch to the larger batch of sauce. Heat the 1 teaspoon oil in a
large, 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat. Season the shrimp or chicken
lightly with salt and pepper and add to the skillet. Add the 1/4 cup reserved
sauce. Saute until cooked through (just a few minutes for shrimp, 5-6 minutes
for chicken). Remove the meat to a plate and return the skillet to the heat.

Add another teaspoon of oil, if needed, and add the bell
peppers, zucchini, and carrots. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the vegetables are
crisp-tender, longer for softer vegetables.

Add the cooked spaghetti, shrimp or chicken, and reserved
sauce mixture. Toss to combine and cook for 2-3 minutes until heated through. Sprinkle
with chopped cilantro and serve immediately.

Indian Garlic Curry

Ingredients:

Pearl Onions – 6 to 8 halved

Garlic Cloves - 12-15

Tamarind - Lemon size

Pearl Onion Powder - 3 tbsp

Sea Salt - to taste

Sesame Oil - 3 tbsp

Mustard Seeds - 1/2 tsp

Fenugreek Seeds - 1/4 tsp

Asafoetida - 1/4 tsp

Curry Leaves - 1 spring

Directions: Soak the tamarind in warm water to extract the pulp. Set aside. Heat
the oil in a pan. Spread the mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. Add the
asafoetida, curry leaves, pearl onions and garlic cloves. Sauté on medium heat for
a few minutes. Add pearl onion powder and fry for a minute. Add the extracted pulp,
required water and sea salt. Bring to a boil, reduce the flame and let it
simmer until oil separates.

Dishes mixing onion and garlic can be traced to Europe and South America
quite easily. There is heavy use of garlic in Italian food which is generally
mixed with tomato and oregano. The French prefer a mixture of garlic and
tarragon in their dishes. Moving further East across Europe the Russians eat
garlic mixed with sour cream. Whereas, the Greeks prefer it mixed with lemon
and cinnamon. The Spanish coastal areas use garlic heavily in seafood.

Spanish Garlic Shrimp

Ingredients

12 cloves garlic

1 pound large shrimp,
peeled, shells reserved

1/2 cup extra-virgin
olive oil

Kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon baking
soda

Pinch red pepper
flakes, or a 1-inch piece dried chili

1 1/2 teaspoons
sherry vinegar

2 tablespoons chopped
fresh parsley leaves

Directions for Spanish Garlic Shrimp: Finely mince 4 garlic cloves and place in a bowl. Smash 4 cloves
under the flat side of a knife and place in a large skillet. Thinly slice
remaining four garlic cloves and set aside. Add shrimp to bowl with minced
garlic. Add 3 tablespoons olive oil, 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and baking soda.
Toss to combine thoroughly and set aside at room temperature. Add shrimp shells
to skillet with smashed garlic and add remaining olive oil and pepper flakes.
Set over medium-low to low heat and cook, stirring and tossing occasionally,
until shells are deep ruby red, garlic is pale golden brown, and oil is
intensely aromatic, about 10 minutes. Oil should be gently bubbling the whole
time. When ready, strain through a fine mesh strainer into a small bowl,
tossing and pressing the shrimp shells to extract as much oil as possible.
Discard shells and garlic. Return flavored oil to skillet and heat over
medium-high heat until shimmering. Add sliced garlic and cook, stirring
constantly, until pale golden brown, about 1 minute. Add shrimp and cook,
tossing and stirring constantly until shrimp are barely cooked through, about 2
minutes. Add sherry vinegar and parsley and toss to combine. Season to taste
with salt. Serve immediately.

In North America,
garlic is used in many common dishes and a variety of preparation styles are
used. Sautéing is the most common method used for cooking garlic. It gives the
garlic a nutty savory flavor. Garlic can be sautéed in oil or butter. The sauté
can then be poured into just about any recipe. Specifically, in the United
States garlic is heavily used in barbeque. This traditional way of preparing
meats comes primarily from the Southern United States. But there are specific
BBQ styles all over the USA that vary by region, state, and even county.
Barbecue uses a wide variety of flavors added to sauces that are cooked over
open flame. Garlic is a big part of the flavor palette of this style of
cooking.

American BBQ Pork

Ingredients

750 grams of pork rump

1/3 cup of pineapple juice

½ cup of Worcestershire sauce

4 tablespoons or more of fresh
peeled garlic, minced

1 bulb of onion, finely chopped

¼ cup of tomato catsup

1 teaspoon of ground black pepper

2 tablespoons of sugar

15 metal skewers

Cooking Instructions

Slice the pork meat into ¼ inch
slices, then cut the slices into 2” x 3” pieces. Wash and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the
pineapple juice, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, onion, tomato catsup, black
pepper and sugar together. Add the meat and mix well to combine.

Cover with plastic wrap and
place in the refrigerator for about 1 hour at the least, 1 day if you really
want to go for it, mixing as often as possible.

Preheat your gas or start the
fire in your charcoal barbecue grill.

Thread up to 5 pieces of
marinated pork with a metal skewer process until all meat has been skewered, or
leave on the bone if that’s favorite.

Set aside the marinade for
basting. Place the skewered meat in a single line and baste with the leftover
marinade every few minutes on both sides. Cook the pork meat until the desired
doneness is desired, or until the juices run clear.

Number of
Servings: 15 servings of garlic barbeque pork.

There are also many
basic ways that garlic is prepared throughout the world.

You can steam in a variety of ways: with a covered, perforated basket
that rests above a pot of boiling water; with a parchment wrapper or foil; with
Chinese bamboo steamers that stack on top of a wok; and with convenient
electric steamers.

Steaming cooks and seals in flavor, eliminating the need for added fats
during preparation.

It also preserves nutrients better than any other cooking method except
microwaving.

It's perfect for fish and shellfish because it doesn't dry out the
delicate flesh. Halibut, cod and snapper steam particularly well.

A large pot in which to place collapsible basket steamers,
To steam on top of the stove, simply bring water to a boil in your selected
stove-top steamer, reduce heat so that a strong simmer sends steam escaping,
add food to the steaming compartment, cover with a lid, and begin timing.
A makeshift steamer can be easily created with everyday cooking utensils. Use
any deep-frying pan or pot, such as a 6-quart Dutch oven, and place a rack
inside balanced on two identical pieces of wood wedged into the bottom. (Make
sure the lid is tight-fitting.) Spaghetti pots that come with separate smaller
baskets that sit up high and fit snugly under the lid make good steamers as
well.
A 3/4- to 1-inch fish fillet takes anywhere from 6-15 minutes to steam, depending
upon the fish; vegetables and fruit (such as a bunch of medium-stalked
asparagus, a pound of green beans or two pears cut up) take from 10-25 minutes;
a boneless chicken breast, 20 minutes.

Don't bother salting foods during steaming, as it just washes off.

Flavoring is as simple as a twist of lemon. Steam one fish fillet by
wrapping it in foil with a few garlic cloves, grated fresh ginger, onion and
basil leaves. After squeezing fresh lemon juice over the fish, wrap it closed
and place in a steamer basket. Bring 2 inches of water to a boil in a pot, put
basket over water and cover. Steam for about 6 minutes.

STIR-FRYING
Cooking at a very high heat for a very short time is the essence of
stir-frying. Because food is cooked so quickly, it should be cut into small,
uniform pieces to ensure every ingredient is cooked thoroughly. This is another
method that requires your full attention, as continuous stirring and sometimes
tossing of the ingredients are necessary to prevent food from sticking to the
pan.

The best way to stir-fry is in a wok. The sloping sides and rounded
bottom are specially designed so food can be quickly browned in the
"belly" of the pan and then moved up to the sides, where it finishes
cooking more slowly. Traditionally, Chinese woks are cast iron and take a while
to heat up. Most woks today are made of carbon steel, which heats up and cools
down more quickly. The wok is placed on a metal ring which sits over the
burner. When it's very hot, oil is added, followed by the food.

Be prepared: Vegetables should be properly diced or chopped; meats should be
trimmed of fat and sliced. Spices should be laid out on a plate and ready to
go.
If cooking a meat and vegetable dish, brown meat first, then push it to the
sides of the wok before adding veggies.
Use extra-virgin olive oil from a spray pump to coat your wok.

BROILING
One of the simplest of all cooking methods, broiling cooks by exposing food to
direct heat in an electric or gas stove, usually in the bottom drawer of the
oven. It renders the same results as grilling, but in grilling the heat comes
from below, while in broiling it comes from above. Because the heat is
constant, all you really need to do is move the food closer to or farther from
the flame depending on how you like your food cooked. That means the thinner the
cut of food, the closer the heat source should be so it quickly sears the
surface of the food, leaving the interior less done. Because broiling is a
dry-heat method of cooking (which means no additional oil), lean cuts of beef
and chicken work best when marinated first or basted during cooking.

Here are the broiling basics. Gas or electric stove. Always preheat the
broiler for 30 minutes with the rack in place so foods can be seared quickly. For
a 1/2-inch-thick piece of meat, allow 6 minutes of cooking time for rare, 9
minutes for medium and 12 minutes for well-done. For bone-in chicken, allow
about 15 minutes per pound. Turn all foods halfway through cooking time.

To sear food, place it 1 inch below a preheated broiler for 1-2 minutes
per side.
For easy clean-up, line your broiler pan with foil.

Fish recipe: Place 1 3/4-2 pounds of fish fillet (such as halibut, cod
or snapper) in a large microwave-safe dish. Prepare a marinade of your
preference (or try a combo of olive oil, lemon juice, Dijon mustard, salt and
crumbled bay leaf). Add marinade to fish and set aside for 20 minutes. Cover
the dish and microwave on high for 4-9 minutes (depending on thickness of
fillet) until juices are clear and fish flakes in center. Remove and let cool
for 2 minutes.

For quick, homemade applesauce, Wise cuts two pounds of peeled apples into
1/2-inch chunks, puts them in a large bowl and sprinkles them with sugar,
cinnamon and a splash of lime juice. Microwave on high for 10 minutes.

PRESSURE COOKING
Food cooked in a pressure cooker requires very little water and time, which
means that vitamins and minerals are kept intact. The cooker seals in steam
created by the boiling liquid, which intensifies the flavors. This means that
you won't need to add any oil or fat for taste or richness. You barely need to
season the food either. Soups and stews that would usually take hours to simmer
on the stove or a whole chicken can be ready in 15 minutes, rice in five and
most vegetables in about three.

There are three types of pressure cookers: the old-fashioned
"jiggler" or weight-valve; the developed weight-valve; and the
spring-valve. All of these valves serve as a pressure regulator and tell you
when it's time to adjust the heat. (They all feature safety valves that allow
excess pressure to escape, and most have safety locks that make them impossible
to open until the pressure has fully dropped.) The spring-valve is the most
precise and easiest for beginners to use.
Use a timer when pressure cooking. This method cooks so quickly that every
second really counts.
Don't fill your cooker more than two-thirds full. When cooking foods that
expand, such as beans or rice, fill only halfway to allow for the buildup of
steam and pressure.
Be very careful when opening the lid. Never put your face over the pot because
of the heat of the steam.

To
learn more about how to cook garlic read our garlic
recipes page or visit on of these garlic
restaurants. To enjoy these tasty flavors learn
how to peel garlic in 2,5,10,15,20,30
seconds
! It just depends on how hard you shake it.